CH 56.1

You’re Good-Looking (1)

Not long after, a message finally arrived on Ruan Qingmu’s WeChat.

Ruan Qingmu and Qin Yuan were busy going over exam questions at the desk. Upon hearing the message notification, they raised their heads simultaneously.

Ruan Qingmu quickly opened his voicemail. As expected, Fang Li had left him a message.

His voice came out weak and soft. “Ruan-ge… Sorry, I didn’t see everyone’s messages earlier. I’m really all right. You don’t need to worry about me.”

Ruan Qingmu didn’t bother to reply with a voice message but simply dialed his phone number directly. It rang for a long time before Fang Li truly couldn’t hide anymore and finally accepted the call.

Ruan Qingmu didn’t give him the time to speak and spoke in a straightforward fashion. “Fang Li, listen to me. I don’t care if you want to be a girl or only like to wear women’s clothes. It’s up to you and I’m not interested either way. But you can’t be defeated by those people!”

Qin Yuan’s eyebrows jumped and he shook his head disapprovingly, but Ruan Qingmu ignored him and coldly spoke into the microphone. “What does it matter to you what those scumbags think and say? You have to stand up straight and live well for them to see – No, live well for yourself. Understand?”

Fang Li didn’t say anything over the phone, but it was slightly noisy in the background.

It seemed to be a woman’s shrill, sharp voice, but it was slightly far off and Ruan Qingmu was unable to tell if it was a sound coming from the television or not.

Ruan Qingmu slowed down. “Fang Li, are you still there?”

Fang Li finally said in a soft voice, “I’m here.”

Ruan Qingmu sighed. “The discussion post has already been deleted. The school will also handle Liu Jun and the others. For all the other stuff, you should ignore them and don’t listen to what other people say. After the holiday, hold your head up high and go to school, understand?”

Fang Li let out a soft “mm.” “Okay.”

Ruan Qingmu questioned him again, “Bai Xiaosheng said your toothbrush and other things are gone?”

Fang Li’s voice was incredibly soft. “No… I have the habit of packing all of my things whenever I go home.”

Ruan Qingmu finally sighed in relief. “That’s good then. Don’t scare people. Oh right, Fu Songhua was looking for you this whole day. Remember to let him know you’re okay.”

This time, Fang Li didn’t utter anything.

Ruan Qingmu had just wanted to speak when an ear-piercing smash sounded on the phone suddenly. A shrill woman’s voice came close to the microphone, hysterically shrieking, “Fang Li! What are you doing? You only know how to hide. Look at you, hiding like a rat!”

Fang Li anxiously said into the microphone, “Ruan-ge, I’m hanging up now. Something came up at home.”

***

In the old dormitory of the song and dance troupe, in some unknown room, an old-fashioned tape recorder was loudly turned up. Still, the babbling of Pingtan* xiaodiao* blared in the dim corridor, carrying the flavor and decadence of the old times.

*T/N: A collective name for two forms of opera: Pinghua and Tanci.

*T/N: A Chinese folk song genre.

Fang Li huddled in the corner of the living room in his home, looking at the woman in the middle of the room with great trepidation.

That woman was his mother.

After not being the taizhu* for many years, she was still fit and graceful. But her eyes were frighteningly bright and her face was as mad as ever as she spoke with slightly morbid excitement.

*T/N: The main stage performer in a troupe.

“Fang Li, what’s that look in your eyes?” She suddenly grabbed a plate of peanuts on the coffee table and smashed it right into Fang Li’s face. “I can tell from your look that you think I’m old and ugly and a disgrace to you! You and those people in the troupe are all the same, wishing that I’d just drop dead. If I die, you guys will turn a blind eye to everything!”

Fang Li hurried to use his arms to block her fists, looking down and not daring to move.

After his mom returned to her room while still swearing, he finally climbed up and went to the kitchen to make noodles and heat up the afternoon’s leftovers.

He carefully held a bowl and knocked on his mom’s door, murmuring, “Mom, come out and eat a little, okay?”

His mom scolded in a loud voice, “I don’t eat at night, don’t you know? You just want to feed me so that I become a fat pig and won’t be able to perform onstage again. Only then will you be happy!”

Fang Li stood at the door before softly saying, “Mom, remember to drink your medicine, ah…”

A sound came from the room. He didn’t know what it was that his mom had smashed against the wall. Fang Li was scared until he was shaking from head to toe and hurried to carry the bowl back to the kitchen.

Sitting on a small stool, he silently ate the leftovers.

As he ate, teardrops slowly fell into the bowl.

After eating, he washed the lonely bowl and returned to his small room.

The exam papers he hadn’t finished doing during the day were on his desk. He blankly looked at them for a long time before picking up his phone.

Every kind of missed call and unread message was from that heartless guy.

“Fang Li, are you there? If you’re there, give me a reply!”

“…”

“I know you’re there. No matter what, accept my call. I have something I want to say to you, okay?”

He silently looked at his phone and opened that password-protected photo album.

There weren’t many pictures inside – at most four or five. Sometimes it was a few people together on the sports field and sometimes it was everyone having a meal together.

There was always the shadow of one person who grinned heartlessly, showing off his healthy white teeth, either playing ball under the sunshine or leading in the field.

The last one was the group picture taken less than two days ago.

The cool breeze brushed lightly and the colorful flags fluttered in the field. Besides the jumping pit, Fang Li was smiling shyly and that person also had a bright smile on his face.

He looked at the photo in a daze before finally leaving the album.

After a while, he pressed delete on the whole album with trembling fingers.